Kiss The Girl
by tryanforever91
Summary: It's Gabriella's birthday, and Troy's forgotten his present. Het gets a chance at redemption when a certain song plays to get things started between the "match made in heaven". Too bad he doesn't like Gabriella that way. Based on a true story. TRYAN.


**Kiss The Girl  
**Written by tryanforever91

_-__Inspired by a true story__-_

Troy exhaled deeply as he straightened the sleeves of his jacket. He was standing atop the front steps of the Evans Mansion, waiting for someone to answer the door. Growing impatient, he rang the doorbell again, and rapped a few times on the door. He could faintly hear the sound of someone bounding toward the door, and in an instant, it swung open to reveal Sharpay in sparkling green dress.

"Troy! You came!" She squealed, taking the boy's hand and pulling him inside. It was Gabriella's birthday today, and Ryan and Sharpay were throwing a party for her. "Where's your present?"

"Oh." Troy said. He scratched the back of his head and shrugged. "I forgot to get one." Sharpay signed and rolled her eyes.

"You're hopeless Troy Bolton." She led him into a large room set up with tables and chairs. There was a DJ at the turntable, and buffet tables lining the walls. No one threw a party like an Evans. There was a small gathering of people scattered about the room. Most of the basketball team was there. Some people from the drama club were there too. Of course, Taylor and Chad were there. And the birthday girl herself, Gabriella. Upon seeing Troy, she got up from her table and ran up to him, enveloping him in a tight hug.

"Oh Troy! Thanks for coming!" She said gleefully.

Troy smiled and patted Gabriella on the back. "Happy birthday, Gabriella."

"Thanks." Gabriella said. She and Troy headed to the table Gabriella was sitting at. Chad and Taylor were sitting with them. Chad greeted Troy with a smile.

"Hey man, what's up?"

"Hey Chad." Troy replied. "Not much, how 'bout you?"

Chad shrugged. "Same old stuff."

The four made small talk over hors d'oeuvres, as the party guests partied on the dancefloor. Taylor was eager to join them, and finally convinced Chad to join her just in time for the night's first slow dance. Now, Gabriella and Troy were alone at the table.

"So," Gabriella said. "Tell me, Troy. What did you get me for my birthday?"

Troy looked uneasy, and took a moment before he answered. "It's a… surprise." He said. Gabriella smiled.

"You didn't get anything, did you?"

Troy shook his head. "No, I didn't. Sorry Gabriella." But Gabriella still smiled.

"Hey, don't sweat it Troy." She said comfortingly. She placed her hand on top of Troy's. "At least you came to see me, right?"

Troy's gaze darted down to his hand for a fleeting moment before looking at Gabriella again. "Y-yeah…" Troy swallowed. He didn't care much for the way Gabriella was squeezing his hand. Fortunately, they were soon joined by someone else.

"Hey!" Greeted a familiar voice. Troy and Gabriella turned to see Ryan.

"Hi Ryan." Gabriella smiled. "Is that my present?"

"It most certainly is." Ryan answered, brandishing a big, bright box adorned with a bow. "But you're not getting it until later." He said, taunting Gabriella with a crooked grin.

Troy sighed softly. He loved Ryan's carefree nature. He was always so bright and happy, and he really liked to make people smile. His eyes locked with Ryan's for a passing moment before Ryan opened his mouth to say something again.

"Sorry, what was that?" Troy said, snapping back to reality.

"I said, where's your present?" Ryan said.

"It's…" Troy didn't want to say it a third time.

"It's a surprise." Gabriella finished for him.

Ryan gave Troy a questioning look, and Troy was pretty sure Ryan wasn't buying it. "Is that so? Well, I'm looking forward to that." Ryan let his crystal blue eyes linger on Troy a moment longer. Something about the way Troy looked back at him enticed him. One look at Troy's smile, and Ryan's knees almost gave way.

Troy smiled. He knew it, and he knew Ryan knew it. There was just something about the look in Ryan's eyes that seemed to dive deep into his being, tapping into his innermost thoughts. He couldn't hide anything from Ryan, and part of Troy liked that.

"Well," Ryan said, finally ending the moment. "I'm gonna add this one to the pile." He gestured toward the stack of presents sitting on one of the tables. "See you later."

"Bye Ryan." Gabriella said.

Troy waved. "See ya." They were alone again at the table, and Gabriella was still holding onto Troy's hand as they talked. Every once in a while, Gabriella would stare longingly at the dance floor, as if hinting at something. Troy looked to the mass of people swaying on the floor. Chad and Taylor were wrapped around each other, rocking slowly to the ballad the DJ selected. Sharpay twirled in front of them, her hand held in Zeke's as they sashayed across the room in a grand waltz. Jason and Kelsi were in a corner, hands on hips and shoulders like how kids danced at middle school dances. It seemed everyone had a partner to dance with…

Troy was starting to get an idea of what Gabriella was hinting at. He sighed. He would admit that Gabriella was a very nice girl. She was smart, funny, and kind… but he just did not like her that way. He was fine with just being her friend. They got along great like that, he didn't see the need for all the mushy stuff. Unfortunately, she didn't see it that way. Nor did the rest of the school. To them, they were a dream couple; a match made in heaven. They were just 'too cute' and 'perfect for each other'. Troy had heard it enough times, from so many of the people dancing in front of him right now. He looked away. He caught a glimpse of Ryan, who was sitting alone at the present table, fiddling with a tag on one of the gift bags.

_He sure looks lonely,_ Troy thought. Troy would have liked to have said that Ryan was a good friend too… but then he'd be lying. Of course, Ryan was a really nice guy; always polite, and very witty. The thing is, Troy just didn't see enough of Ryan to consider him a friend, however much he wanted to. Ryan was just such a cool person, and Troy really liked it when he got the chance to be with him. But those moments were few and far between. He was always with Sharpay. And Troy was always with Gabriella…

As the night wore on, Gabriella became more and more persistent. Her hinting became less subtle the longer Troy sat and did nothing. He just didn't feel comfortable enough to dance with her, why was that such a big deal? Troy felt someone tap his shoulder.

"Dude, aren't you gonna ask her to dance?" Whispered the voice of Chad.

"No." Troy whispered back, as Gabriella was turned away to talk to Taylor.

Chad sighed. "Why not?"

"Because!" Troy hissed. "Just lay off, okay?"

Their hushed conversation was interrupted when the high-pitched squeal of microphone feedback filled the room. As party guests yelped and covered their ears, Sharpay tapped her microphone and blew into it.

"Testing, testing, 1 2 3." She said. "Can everyone hear me?"

There was a collective "Yes" and Sharpay continued.

"Okay guys, I'd just like to wish Gabriella a happy seventeenth birthday!" The guests clapped and some gave their wishes to Gabriella as well.

"I'd also like to dedicate this next song to our birthday girl. And Troy, let's call this your birthday present." There was a big "ooooh" from the crowd as Sharpay handed off the mic to the DJ and stepped away from the turntable.

Troy was confused, and a bit apprehensive. What exactly did Sharpay mean? What song did she have in mind for his 'present'? His answer came in a deep Caribbean accent backed by a cricket string ensemble.

_There, you see her._

_Sitting there across the way…_

Oh god. The Little Mermaid? "You have gotta be kidding me." Troy mumbled under his breath. Gabriella smiled sweetly at him, looking slightly embarrassed.

_She don't got a lot to say  
__But there's something about her  
__And you don't why,  
__But you're __dyin__' to try  
__You __wanna, __Kiss__ the Girl…_

Troy sighed. Typical. This was _so_ typical. He just knew he'd get suckered into something like this. The last thing he wanted to do was kiss Gabriella. It would be like kissing a sister, he just couldn't do it. Couldn't people just accept the fact that he wanted to be friends? Still, looking at Gabriella smiling shyly at him… Well, she _was_ a nice girl… And it _was_ her birthday. Troy lost an internal battle of wits and took Gabriella's hand. He would dance with her, but he would _not_ kiss her. Everyone oooh'ed some more, and all joined in for the chorus, much to Troy's dismay.

_Sha__ la __la __la __la __la, __my oh__ my!  
__Look's like the boy's too shy  
__Ain't__ gonna, kiss the girl_

Darn right he wasn't.

_Sha__ la __la __la __la __la, __ain't__ that sad?  
__It's such a shame, too bad  
__He's gonna, miss the girl_

Troy had his arms wrapped around Gabriella's waist, and hers were laced around Troy's neck. She did look stunning that night. Her hair was curled and pulled back, and she was wearing a beautiful blue dress. Troy was in beige slacks and a navy dress shirt.

"Aww look! They even match!"

Troy would have slapped his head had he not been dancing with Gabriella. Pretty as she was, she was still only his friend. Gabriella smiled up at Troy, not saying a word. She looked very happy, and Troy was glad he could at least do this for her, since he had come without a present.

By now, they were the only ones on the dance floor. The others made a circle around them, singing along to that stupid Disney song.

_Now's your moment,  
__Floating in a blue lagoon  
__Boy you better do it soon  
__No time will better_

No. Troy wasn't going to do it. No matter how loudly they played the song, no matter how many people sang the chorus, he was _not_ going to kiss Gabriella.

_Sha__ la __la __la __la __la__, don't be scared!  
__You've got the mood prepared  
__Go on and, kiss the girl  
__Sha__ la __la __la __la __la__, don't stop now!  
__Don't try to hide it how  
__You __wanna__, kiss the girl, whoa __whoa_

Troy grimaced as everyone's voices escalated. He and Gabriella were surrounded by couples, singing to them this meaningless song about infatuation. Troy wasn't aware of it, but sometime during the dance he and Gabriella had gotten a lot closer. It was looking almost inevitable now. As he and Gabriella slowly turned on the spot, he could hear the crowd of people whispering.

"Kiss the girl!"

Gabriella gave Troy that timid smile again, and she inclined her head.

"Kiss the girl!"

Slowly, she closed her eyes, and inched her face closer to Troy's

"Kiss the girl!"

Her warm breath tickled Troy's face, and she was about to close in…

Suddenly, Gabriella was standing alone. Her arms were left hanging in the air where Troy's shoulders had been a moment before. They dropped to her sides as she cast about the room with a saddened look on her face.

Troy growled in frustration as he stormed out of the house through a sliding glass door. He ended up near the pool and sat himself on a deck lounger. That was stupid. No, that was beyond stupid. _Just_ because Gabriella liked him… _Just_ because they were the only two there without an official 'date'. For those silly little reasons, they all had to pull a stupid stunt like that. Troy let out another groan and pulled at his hair. Just because _they_ thought it was right didn't make it right…

Ryan peeked his head out of the house to see Troy sitting by the pool on a lounger. Quietly, he pushed the sliding door wider to sneak through. He crept up behind Troy, and tapped him on the shoulder.

Troy jumped and spun around. He was not expecting a visitor. It turned out to be Ryan. Troy sighed. "Hey Ryan. What are you doing out here?"

Ryan shrugged. "Needed some air."

"Yeah?" Troy asked, scooting over so Ryan could have a seat beside him.

Ryan looked somberly at Troy. "Look, sorry about what my sister did. I know that must have been awkward."

Troy shook his head. "Whatever. It's cool." Obviously it wasn't, but Troy didn't want to talk about it. Ryan got the message and said nothing else.

"Why aren't you in there dancing with everyone else?" Troy asked.

Ryan gave Troy a tentative look. "Well, if you didn't notice… I don't exactly have a dance partner…"

Troy hadn't noticed, and now he was a bit surprised. Why _didn't_ Ryan have a dance partner? "East High's superstar dancer is without a partner?" Troy asked teasingly. "How did that happen?"

Ryan shrugged. "Beats me." Troy inched closer to Ryan on the chair, and placed a hand on Ryan's lap.

_Oh god Troy, you're such a hypocrite._ He thought to himself. Ryan looked up at Troy, confusion written on his face.

"Troy?"

"What? Don't you want to dance?" Troy asked, giving Ryan that smile once again. Ryan's bewildered look remained for a moment, before slowly melting away to reveal his half-grin.

"I'd love to." He said, taking Troy's hand and standing up. Troy held Ryan around the waist, and Ryan slinked his arms over Troy's shoulders. A slow ballad wafted through the open sliding door, and the two slowly swayed in time with the beat.

Ryan looked deep into Troy's radiant eyes. They shone so brightly, reflecting the starlight from above. That boy looked so full of life, and he could feel it coursing through his body as they danced.

Troy lost himself in Ryan's shimmering blue eyes. Here and now, he was able to see the real Ryan; the one that hid behind the jokester. And now more than ever, Troy though Ryan was the most amazing person in the world. There was a calm, peaceful soul lying somewhere in there, and Troy was finally able to see it.

Staring deep into each other's eyes, and stepping slowly to the rhythm of the music, Troy and Ryan were not aware that they had steered themselves so close to the pool's edge. Before either of them knew what had happened, they both fell into the pool.

When they surfaced, their laughter echoed into the night, and they each other in close again. Unable to dance now, Troy embraced Ryan, and slowly, the two started leaning into each other.

Everyone had gathered behind the glass door, gawking at the unusual sight. After a few minutes of staring, they all turned to Gabriella.

"Oh Gabriella, I'm so sorry!"

"You must be heartbroken!"

"What a jerk Troy is!"

But Gabriella held a hand up to silence them all. "Guys. It's okay."

"What?!" Sharpay gasped. "What do you mean it's okay? Troy is out there kissing Ryan right now when he should be kissing _you!_"

Gabriella shook her head. "No, he shouldn't be kissing me. I knew it all along…"

"Knew what?" Everyone asked.

"That we weren't meant to be." Gabriella sighed. "But I'm happy for him. He's finally found what he's been looking for, and he deserves it."

"But what about you?" Sharpay said.

"Well…" Gabriella replied, a smile forming on her face. "There's always cake and presents, right?"

Everyone murmured in agreement, and finally saw it Gabriella's way.

"Come on guys. Let's leave them be and have some cake."

**The End**

**

* * *

**

And now, for the story behind the story...

Yes, this is based on true events, from my own personal experience. However, mine didn't quite as nicely...

It's my friend's birthday party, and who happens to show up but this girl I used to like in eighth grade whom i havent seen in 2 years. I didn't like her anymore, but back then we were 'perfect for each other' and apparently still were 2 years later. It's just as the story says, everyone thought we looked adorable together, blah blah, the whole nine yards. And of course, there's nothing but couples at the party. except for one certain individual. there was a guy there i hadn't met until that night. cute as hell, sweetest guy ever, and so funny! and he wasn't a 'couple' with anyone else. well, as luck would have it, as we're all hanging around, someone downloads Kiss The Girl off limewire and plays it, obviously for me and the girl. i didnt, obviously, and we just tried to laugh it off. here's where my story differs from this one. instead of ending up with cute, sweet, dream boy, i end up spending a whole awkward night with this girl I'm only friends with. the night ended with the most awkward kiss in history. that was followed by her no-showing a movie get together the next weekend. sometime after that, she found a boyfriend.

so the moral of the story is... don't pressure people into something they're not comfortable with! only they can decide if that want to 'kiss the girl' or not. and please, for the love of god, NEVER play that song. unless you want to make things a million times more awkward and cheesy.

i hope you all enjoyed that story. hopefully, i'll be able to get the next chapter of "It's Not You Anymore" up soon. i've just been kinda blocked. and yes, i know this story is rather long for a oneshot... but i do NOT do short stories. EVERYTHING i do has to be long. it sjust my style.

so, thanks so much for reading, and please review! i always like to get some feedback on how i can improve! until next time!


End file.
